Tag: Tre Mann

Thunder rookie Tre Mann considered day-to-day with ankle injury

The Thunder rookie initially suffered the injury on Wednesday in a win over the Rockets.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Tre Mann is considered to be day-to-day with a right ankle sprain, head coach Mark Daigneault said.

Mann initially suffered the injury on Wednesday in a win over the Houston Rockets. The injury appeared to happen on a non-contact play in the third quarter after hauling in a rebound and passing the ball up the court to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

He needed assistance walking off the court back to the locker room and would not return to play. Daigneault provided a positive update on the injury on Thursday.

He is a little sore today. He was ruled out to return to the game. The swelling in that ankle was not extreme so he presented pretty well this morning, all things considered where he was last night. I would call him day-to-day at this point.

Mann recorded seven points and two steals in 11 minutes of action prior to the injury. The appearance marked the 10th of the season for Mann, who has played sparingly with the Thunder, averaging just 5.2 points and 1.4 rebounds in 10.9 minutes.

With playing time, potentially, limited with the Thunder, the organization outlined a plan for Mann ahead of the season. He will spend portions of the season with the OKC Blue in the NBA G League, a plan designed to maximize his development, Daigneault said.

I think the Blue was part of the plan is that he would be reattached to the Blue here soon so if that happens, don’t be surprised. I’m not going to commit to a timeline on that but we have kind of a big-picture plan for him that is kinda independent of his outcomes there or here. We’re just on a one-track mind in terms of putting him in the best position to develop his holistic game.

The opportunity to play with the Blue will give him a great chance to work on his game and fine-tune aspects of his game before returning to the Thunder. The team will first take care of his ankle injury but it sounds as though Mann will be back in the G League soon.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Thunder grades: Lu Dort goes off for 34 points in OKC win over Rockets

Lu Dort’s offense is no fluke as the OKC Thunder took down the Houston Rockets.

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s 101-89 victory over the Houston Rockets was a statement in more ways than one:

First, Lu Dort’s offensive outburst as of late is not merely a fluke.

Second, the Thunder’s intensity is much different when they’re losing and mounting comebacks than when they’re winning and coasting the clock.

Third, and most importantly: The Thunder are above the bottom tier of the NBA.

Now, that’s a rather anti-climactic statement, but it’s a meaningful one. The Thunder aren’t good enough to be falling by any “trap” games this season, but this had the makings of one: Oklahoma City recently won four games in a row. The Rockets are a one-win team but have talent at the center position that OKC lacks. Houston actually beat the Thunder just a few weeks ago.

But Oklahoma City didn’t fall for it. They put on the clamps early, taking a 12-point lead into halftime, then kept up the pressure, leading by 16 at the end of the third.

It was only then that the Rockets made their move, going on a run to cut the deficit as low as five. At that point, Dort came alive.

The Thunder would not have won the game without their defensive stopper’s offense. In the first 5:06 of the game, Dort scored nine points. In the final 5:06 of the game, Dort scored nine points.

As much as the first nine points kickstarted the Thunder — Dort had nine of the team’s first 11 points — the final nine secured the victory. After Houston cut the lead to five, Dort scored five straight points, starting with a 3-pointer made with 5:06 to play and then a pair of free throws. The Rockets pushed and pushed, but he wouldn’t let them take.

Dort finished with a season-high 34 points on 14-for-22 shooting, made four 3-pointers and grabbed eight rebounds. He has now scored 20 points or more in five games in a row, three of which were Thunder wins.

And those wins are evidence enough: When debating over the worst team in the league, the Thunder cannot be in that conversation. They have defeated the Rockets and New Orleans Pelicans, both of whom are in that conversation. They beat the San Antonio Spurs, who have the third-worst record in the West and the same number of wins as the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons in the East.

Those are the bottom five and OKC is unquestionably above them. That’s nothing to gloat about at all; it’s a simple truth. After it was assumed the Thunder would be a bottom-three team in the league, they are, for the second year in a row, too good to outright tank.

It’s not worth celebrating, but “ringz culture” in the NBA has obfuscated the fact that fans are allowed to be happy when their team is unexpectedly good or unexpectedly fun. Feel free to be happy that Oklahoma City only spent about half a season as the worst team in the league. They have multiple good, fun players this time around.

Moving onto the Thunder’s grades for the Wednesday game. Dort gets an A-plus. Here are more:

Thunder rookie Tre Mann suffers ankle injury during game against Rockets

The Thunder announced that Tre Mann suffered a right ankle sprain. He did not return to the game.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie guard Tre Mann exited the game against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday due to an ankle injury that appeared to be on a non-contact play. He was ruled out with a right ankle sprain shortly after.

Between receiving a pass in the backcourt off a defensive rebound and passing it upcourt to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Mann appeared to roll his ankle upon landing. He went to the ground and grabbed around the area of his ankle. A timeout was called and he was helped off the court into the locker room.

He did not return. Mann finished the game with seven points in 11 minutes of play in the Thunder’s 101-89 win over the Rockets.

The former Florida guard, selected with the No. 18 pick in the 2021 NBA draft, is averaging 5.2 points in 10 appearances for the Thunder this season. After a slow start during preseason play, Mann is shooting 37.5% from behind the arc.

With their 4th win in a row, the Thunder are in play-in position

So much for those early-season criticisms. The Thunder are now on a four-game winning streak and are in 10th place in the Western Conference.

Like the brand-new jerseys the Oklahoma City Thunder donned on Friday night, this OKC team looks unrecognizable to the league that thought they would be pushovers in the 2021-22 campaign.

The 105-103 comeback victory topped off by a Lu Dort steal and layup that won the game puts the Thunder on a four-game winning streak. With victories over the Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans and now the Sacramento Kings, the Thunder are outplaying expectations set by those around the league.

On Friday, the Thunder overcame an 18-point deficit, the fourth time they’ve come back from trailing by more than 15 this season. In doing so, they inched closer to a .500 record. Now at 5-6 on the season, Oklahoma City is in 10th place, good for a play-in spot in the early junctures of the year.

Their wins haven’t been against teams that are tanking. Two of the victories were against the Lakers, who entered the year among Western Conference favorites but have struggled to get going, particularly without LeBron James on the court. It’s hard to say the Spurs are good this year, but as long as coach Gregg Popovich is at the helm, they’ll put up a fight. The Kings are hoping for their first playoff appearance in 15 years. The Pelicans — well, OK, the Pelicans are bad and were missing their two stars, but this was supposed to be a good season for them.

Against Sacramento on Friday night, Dort and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 22 points apiece and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl tied Serge Ibaka’s Thunder rookie record with 14 rebounds in a game.

Off the bench, Kenrich Williams was a team-high plus-13 in 18 minutes of play. He scored nine points and had five rebounds. Tre Mann came up big with seven fourth-quarter points, including a key 3-pointer that gave the Thunder a lead. He finished with 12 points total.

Darius Bazley was very efficient, as he made six of his eight shots and went 2-for-3 from behind the arc. He finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.

With similar shooting percentages between the two teams, Oklahoma City’s four extra shots and four extra made field goals were difference-makers.

All in all, the game followed a similar trend to what we have seen in this recent stretch: The Thunder struggled to score in the first quarter (16 points), found their way in quarter two (32 points), picked it up in the third (outscored the Spurs by 5) and then iced the game late (Thunder outscored San Antonio 28-17 in the fourth).

Oklahoma City got enough from enough key contributors and then looked to its best players when it mattered most. Dort was the one to pick them on Friday, as Gilgeous-Alexander had a solid 22 points but shot just 9-for-24 from the field.

Heading into a back-to-back against the Brooklyn Nets and Miami Heat, it was a good win and confidence builder to close out this stretch against Western Conference opponents.

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How did the recently recalled Thunder players do in the G League?

Isaiah Roby, Tre Mann and Vit Krejci were recently recalled to the Thunder. How did they do in their games with the OKC Blue?

The Oklahoma City Thunder recalled Isaiah Roby, Vit Krejci and Tre Mann from the G League on Sunday ahead of the game against the San Antonio Spurs.

Roby played one game for the OKC Blue while Vit Krejci and Tre Mann appeared in two apiece.

How did the young Thunder players perform with the OKC Blue?

Krejci, in two starts, posted a well-rounded 9.5 points, 5.0 assists and 6.5 rebounds over 25.2 minutes per game.

On Sunday night, he appeared for five seconds in the Thunder game, making him the 59th player to play in both a G League and NBA game in the same day, according to the Oklahoman.

Mann started a pair of games for the Blue and posted averages of 6.5 points, 5.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds over 16.5 minutes per game.

However, he only played nine minutes in the second game due to a nose injury. In that time on the court, he scored two points on 1-for-6 shooting and had three rebounds and two assists.

Head coach Mark Daigneault said the team had planned to send him down from the onset of the season, but gave him five Thunder appearances before doing so. Mann is averaging about five points and one rebounds over 10 minutes per game with OKC.

Roby played 29 minutes in the Blue’s Sunday win over the Salt Lake City Stars. He scored 19 points and grabbed 11 boards with 8-for-13 shooting from the field, by far his best game of the season.

A mainstay for the Thunder last year, Roby has had a slow start to his NBA season. In five appearances, he has posted 5.5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game and is shooting 45.5%.

Oklahoma City takes the court again tonight against the New Orleans Pelicans with a 7 p.m. tipoff.

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Thunder rookie Tre Mann assigned to G League team

Tre Mann has been assigned to the Oklahoma City Blue.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie guard Tre Mann has been assigned to the G League, the organization announced on Friday.

Mann, the No. 18 pick in the 2021 NBA draft, will play for the OKC Blue.

On Friday afternoon, Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault told media that it was the organization’s long-term plan to send Mann to the G League and that this was not the result of the guard’s on-court play.

Daigneault said he told Mann the morning of the first game of the season that he would bounce between the Thunder and the Blue.

“We didn’t want him to think it was based on the outcome of how he played in a game,” Daigneault said. “Diversity of experiences for a young player is important, so his ability to go there, play more minutes, take on a heavier load defensively, find a little bit of rhythm offensive, settle into games a little bit more, settle into practices a little bit more, is a great opportunity for him to grow.”

Mann played well in his first two games, shooting a combined 7-for-12 from the field, but over the next three games he only made three total shots and missed all four 3s he attempted.

The 20-year-old can get some play as a lead guard with the Blue.

Sending him to the G League will also create playing time for backup guard Ty Jerome at the NBA level. Jerome, who averaged 10.7 points and shot 42.3% from 3 last season, has only appeared in two of the Thunder’s first five games.

Guard/forward Vit Krejci was recalled from the G League and then re-assigned multiple times this week. Daigneault said it was a formality to maximize his practice time with both groups.

Thunder rookie Tre Mann to spend time with OKC Blue in G League

Oklahoma City opted to assign Mann to the Blue to give him the opportunity to play extended minutes.

On Friday, the Oklahoma City Thunder announced that they assigned rookie Tre Mann to the OKC Blue, their affiliate in the NBA G League.

Oklahoma City opted to send Mann to the Blue to give him the opportunity to play extended minutes. He has appeared in each game to this point of the season with the Thunder but is averaging 4.8 points and one rebound in 10.2 minutes.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault sat down with Mann prior to the regular-season opener to outline the plan for him this season. The team does not view the assignment as a demotion, rather more of a chance for him to get consistent playing time.

Daigneault explained some of what the team has in store for him.

The plan would be for us to travel without him. Any change in circumstance can change the plan. The plan is for him to be there for a little bit of a stretch. Get some practices with that team and play with them. … Our initial plan is to have him there for a minute.

The Blue will start playing their home games this season at Paycom Center, where the Thunder play. They previously played in the Cox Convention Center across the street but will now share a home with the Thunder, making it even more convenient to assign players to the Blue.

However, it sounds as though Mann will spend extended time with the Blue as he continues his development. The opportunity will give him a great chance to work on his game and fine-tune some things before returning to the Thunder.

The Blue open up their season on Nov. 5 versus the Salt Lake City Stars.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Grading former Gator Tre Mann’s NBA debut with Oklahoma City

The former Florida guard impressed against the Utah Jazz in his first game.

Florida’s first NBA draft pick in eight years (and first-round pick in nine years) took the court for the first time in a game that counts on Wednesday night. Guard Tre Mann, the 18th pick in the 2021 NBA draft, made his professional debut with the Oklahoma City Thunder against the Utah Jazz and had a solid game to start his pro career.

Despite seeing rotational action off the bench and playing just 15 minutes, he scored nine points in his first game and went 4 of 7 from the field. He also hit a pull-up jumper off a high pick and roll just before the first-quarter buzzer with his foot on the line, making it a long two.

Mann also had an assist, a steal and a block in his debut.

That’s about all you could hope for from a project player who was expected to see a minor role on the team this season, and for his effort, he earned a “B” grade from Thunder Wire.

It was a decent opener for Mann. His minutes might fluctuate with the need to get Ty Jerome some action — on Wednesday, Jerome was a DNP — but the rookie earned time moving forward.

Jerome was a solid rotational guard for the Thunder last year, averaging 10.1 points and 3.6 assists, and he and Theo Maladon are Mann’s biggest competitors for reps right now. But the raw first-round rookie should be able to see a significant role in the rotation as the season progresses.

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Thunder rookie Tre Mann still getting a feel for team, playbook

With just two preseason games under his belt, Mann said that he is still getting a feel for the playbook.

Oklahoma City Thunder rookie Tre Mann on Sunday said he continues to get more comfortable with the team and playbook with each practice to this point of training camp.

Mann admitted he was a bit nervous ahead of his first preseason game last Monday, and his final stat line may have reflected that. He finished that contest with eight points, three steals, two rebounds and two assists on 1-of-7 shooting from the field.

With only one game under his belt, he said he is still getting a feel for the playbook.

For me, it’s just trying to get a feel for everything. I’m still learning the plays and trying to make the right plays because I’m a playmaker so right now I’m kinda getting a feel for it and trying to ease my way into it.

Mann responded on Sunday by producing nine points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal on 4-of-9 shooting from the field. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault thought Mann played with more confidence in the contest and liked what he saw from him.

Certainly, Mann will continue to improve the more he plays. He projects to be a player that can do a little bit of everything, and that should show as he progress through the season.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Josh Giddey impresses in his Thunder preseason debut

Josh Giddey showed out with his off-hand passing and finishing in his preseason debut, a Thunder loss to the Hornets.

In failing to move up to the No. 1 spot in the draft lottery, the Oklahoma City Thunder were unable to draft the fun, exciting, 6-foot-8 player that every lottery team dreamed of selecting in 2021.

Instead, with the No. 6 pick, the Thunder drafted the fun, exciting, 6-foot-8 playmaker that … well, was not projected to go this high by most scouts and analysts.

But in Josh Giddey’s first preseason game, a 113-97 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, the Australian guard showed out. He had team-highs of 18 points and seven rebounds to go with three assists. Starting alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Darius Bazley and Isaiah Roby, Giddey’s 29 minutes were the most on the team.

His professional experience shined on some plays. This cross-court, left-handed pass isn’t one a normal rookie makes in his preseason debut:

The pass alone would be impressive, but look at him quick to sneak in as center Mason Plumlee failed to box him out. Plumlee is a 6-foot-11 veteran, but Giddey snagged the offensive board and finished the and-one through him.

In another play, Giddey did a good job slowing down over the screen, surveying the court, and making his move right as center Nick Richards started to slide away from the center of the court.

Richards got in the way of Miles Bridges, which gave Giddey the time to gain the advantage on Bridges.

He looked good and was efficient in the opener, going 8-for-12 from the field and making two of the four 3-pointers he attempted. He had two turnovers in the game.

Other rookie performances

Mann did not shine the way Giddey did on Monday night. The No. 18 pick in the draft had eight points on 1-for-7 shooting and three turnovers over 20 minutes of play, but there were two areas in which Mann stood out.

His six free throws were the most on the team. The only others who attempted more than two were Gilgeous-Alexander and Ty Jerome, both of whom attempted three.

Mann had three steals as well, a nice positive for the 6-foot-3 Florida product.

His one made field goal was this nifty finish:

No. 32 overall pick Jeremiah Robinson-Earl was the first player to be subbed in for the Thunder, replacing Roby at center. In 15 minutes of play, the former Villanova big had two steals, two rebounds and four fouls without scoring.

No. 55 overall pick Aaron Wiggins entered the game in the fourth quarter and burst out for 12 points in just seven minutes of play. He went 4-for-5 from the field and made all three 3-pointers he attempted.